Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Parents/Guardians Can Help Fund Schools By Returning Federal Survey Cards

Students
at most schools last week brought home Federal Impact Survey
Cards, which your school is asking parents/guardians to complete and
promptly return to their schools. The returned cards qualify the public
schools for significant dollars in federal funds.

The annual
survey determines the number of military and non-military federally
connected students in the public school system for whom the district
receives impact aid funds. These funds provide partial reimbursement to
the district for local tax loss resulting from tax-free federal
installations or property. By filling out and returning the survey
cards, parents help our schools claim and benefit from the district’s
authorized share of federal support. Each survey card is important
because federal impact aid is determined from the survey card responses.
Please, complete, sign and return the card as it is the children who
will benefit.

"If you're active duty military, live in
Navy housing, or are a civilian working on one of our bases or a federal
property, you know the importance of returning these cards," said
Superintendent Bill Kowba. "But it's important for all parents to return
these cards. It only takes a few minutes and it helps our district
qualify for much-needed federal funds."

The San Diego
Unified School District has a high proportion of military dependents and
federal lands within its boundaries, as San Diego is a worldwide center
for Navy and Marine Corps activities.

"These school districts
face special challenges — they must provide a quality education to the
children living on the Indian and other Federal lands and meet the
requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act, while sometimes operating
with less local revenue than is available to other school districts,
because the Federal property is exempt from local property taxes," says
the US Department of Education's website.

Under
federal privacy rules, information on the Impact Aid survey cards is
not used for any other purposes. If you have questions about Impact Aid
or the Impact Aid survey card, please contact your principal.